Luxury New Forest Barn, ideal for couples

This is a delightful spot for a short-ish stay. It is absolutely impeccable when you walk in and you are basically provided with everything you could possibly need. There is a kitchen with anything and everything, a small barbecue (which we did use, to great success and for a lovely meal with local meat), fresh towels and throws and bits for the furniture outside. Upstairs there is even a little nook to the side with a chair, which I used to sit in and read. It's warm, cozy and delightful. The hosts left a local cake for us, which was perfect with the morning coffee. It honestly feels like a home you could move in tomorrow if you wanted, pretty much everything you could need, you have it, we didn't need to purchase or bring any extras with us. We even saw baby deer outside the window in the evening as we were settling in, which was lovely. It is next to a piece of land with a couple of alpacas and geese, so you will hear them every now and then, which we loved (and the alpaca sounds made us laugh too). Behind the barn there is another cottage but we had no trouble with noise or disturbances - I mention this as this is a big problem for our holidays as I am autistic and loud noises/screaming etc. are troublesome for me, but no issues here and I am very grateful for that. It is within walking distance from the nearest shops and the Queen's Head pub, where we had some drinks in the garden (quite a variety of non-alcoholic beverages available, for those who, like me, do not drink alcohol) - a lovely end to our day. Anywhere you would want to go is a short drive away, we hiked and saw a few local areas of interest and were only 15-20 minutes drive away from it all.

There is a booklet with things to do waiting for you - such as spray the shower to avoid stains due to the hard water and a whole process to do before leaving. All the rules made us worried we'd be in trouble if we put something in the wrong place and don't leave the place absolutely spotless - I for one don't want to do house cleaning during my holiday and would have left the place clean upon leaving without being told to do so, same as I do even when I stay in hotels, but this booklet made it feel like we had to be very careful with everything, or else. Would have liked to have read through this booklet before deciding to make the booking as it would have been helpful and I think more honest and offered full transparency. There is also a camera set up on the tree next to the barn, which not only oversees the driveway but also the outside area and some of the inside, which made me a little uncomfortable as we were seen during our meals outside as well as while we were relaxing inside. To be clear: not the entire inside area, but parts, and no sight over the upstairs where the bedroom is. I understand it is their property and we'd have a camera too if we had strangers come in, but it's not great to feel like you are being watched more or less on the inside of the barn (the living room area) as well.

Great location, only an 8 min walk into the village which has lots of cafes. 2 pubs, shops and local ice cream parlour, 25 min walk across countryside to a lovely pub with great food ( incl GF), horses pottering around at the end of the drive. Neighbours have llamas and geese. Lovely area to sit / lye in the sun reading a book. Very quiet area. The cottage is clean and comfy, we didn’t cook but there was a small hob plate and microwave/ oven. Loved the attention to detail and rustic niknaks around.

Something to bear in mind- The spiral staircase upto the bedroom was a bit tricky, it’s quite narrow ( I’m a uk size 8) and very steep. It took me awhile to get down the stairs in the mornings particularly when i was a bit stiff. Because the bed is in the eaves you can’t get into the bed from the side very easily you have to bend over or climb in from the end, so if you were less abled , over weight, tall or a bit older, it might be a problem. I’d go back as it was beautiful but something to be aware of if you suffer with back issues etc.

It was everything and more you could want for a wonderful short break.Nice welcoming touches with Tea,coffee, milk and can honestly say the finest Local Cherry and Almond cake .Thank you.!!!Great Communication and option of a late checkout.

Location it’s such a beautiful place